North’s Foreman To Day 2, McKay’s Her’s Last Throws

SALEM, Ore.– Adam Foreman has been an animal in the 300 meter hurdles dating back to his junior season having won 15 of his 22 races in the event entering the prelims of the District race Tuesday evening at West Salem.

Of those 15 race wins, seven came this year and all are all back-to-back to one another as Foreman is seven-for-seven entering his final District meet.

“It’s kind of great, it kind of gets you ready for every other race. It kind of not gets stale because once you get off the win your like, ‘oh it’s another one, yes’,” said Foreman. “Just want to go undefeated the whole season. State, not looking too good, but I know I can make a damage. I think I can place.”

After winning Districts as a junior after steadily improving during his freshman and sophomore seasons, Foreman came out of the gates for his 300 meter prelim feeling out the competition in the first 50 meters before using the second 100 meters to build a solid cushion to glide to a heat win Tuesday to put him in the finals for a chance for a back-to-back opportunity for another District Title.

And the fire that West Salem-grad Cole Rumrill instill in Foreman that has driven Foreman to keep striving to win these races, Thursday is just another day for what he does best:

“By doing what I do best and just hurdle,” said Foreman.

In a world where a good chunk of throwers look like football lineman throwing shot, discus or the javelin, but McKay’s Kevin Her was all but five-sevenish and about 170 pounds in a Giant’s world.

McKay’s Kevin Her (right) and Head Coach Curt Everretts (left) sharing a few words following Her’s last Discus throw in the Green and Gold (Picture By Jeremy McDonald)

But the Scot senior accepted the role of David in Goliath’s world, but David as Her had his hands full with weather to start his last District Meet Tuesday.

The rain rolled in as he picked up his 12 pound shot-put and struggled to find his groove Her, who didn’t think he’ll hear his named call for the finals it was a sigh of relief for him because he didn’t feel like he threw very well in the discus.

“Honestly I felt like I didn’t deserve, I didn’t feel like I deserved it. I was throwing great during practice throws but then I think I feel into the pressure and then I got into the finals, it gave me a sense of relief,” he said.

For Her, he hoped as he wraps up his day, that he leaves a lasting memory for the younger throwers who look up to him in the McKay program.

“I’m hoping that the future of McKay will do a lot better, learn from what happened today and go on and become great,” said Her. “I believe in the David and Goliath story, if you believe it then you’ll be able to do it. Coming out here, I didn’t believe in myself at first and then I got coached and I trusted myself later on and then I started to throw big throws and I became me.”

Sadly, Her didn’t finish Top 2 in the District to advance to State in the Discus and as every athlete present and former knows the feeling all too well, that feeling of not being able to continue beyond Tuesday’s festivities was present as he hugged and thanked his coaches with tears building in his eyes.

Throughout the day, the frustration was there that he could have better mentally overcoming barriers of his performance, in his heart however, he was happy by the journey to this point.

“I felt like I gave it all physically, not just today but the whole season. I had some new freshman this year and I really feel like they looked up to me,” said Her. “So leaving that example for them, I hope that they grow and become great themselves.”